1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fish strike indicator, and in particular to a fish strike indicator that is non-obtrusive to the user, that is adjustable and that does not interfere with operation of the fishing rod and reel after the indicator is deployed.
2. Description of the Related Art
Fishing, and in particular ice fishing, is an extremely popular sport. There are numerous methods and devices used by the ice fishers in this sport.
One method employs the use a slip bobber to indicate a strike. The disadvantage of this method is that it is very difficult to see a bobber in the ice fishing hole if the angler is more than about fifteen feet away from it due to the geometry of the line of site into the fishing hole. The range decreases significantly when snow or ice is accumulated around the hole.
Another method is to use the fishing rod itself as the strike indicator. This tackle configuration has been referred to as “dead stick” or “still line” fishing. One main drawback with this method is that the angler must constantly watch the tip of their pole for any movement indicative of a fish strike. Visibility is also the big drawback to this method due to the fact that the pole becomes increasingly more difficult to see the further the angler is from it.
A major disadvantage to both the bobber and the “dead stick” methods is that they only notify an angler during a fish strike event. If the angler fails to see the bobber go down or their rod tip bends over and the fish doesn't remain hooked, the angler may be oblivious to the fact that he/she ever had a fish strike. The angler may then unknowingly be missing the bait on the end of their line.
A third technique used for ice fishing incorporates the use of a tip-up. A tip-up uses a highly visible flag to notify an angler that a fish strike has occurred, consequently, allowing the angler to place the tip-up at a much greater distance from him/her. The down side to using a tip-up is that there is no rod and reel involved. When a fish strikes and becomes hooked, the angler must pull the line in with his/her bare hands, usually while kneeling in water or slush on the ice next to the fishing hole. As the angler pulls the fish in through the ice hole, the excess line is dropped onto the ice, frequently becoming tangled. Before the tip-up can be reset, the line must be rewound back onto the spool by hand.
Acknowledging the drawbacks with these methods and devices, several products have been developed to overcome these issues. While each of these products may work well for their intended purposes, each is not without drawbacks. Some examples include:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,129,174 (hereafter “USPN”) to Wilson is titled Fishing Line Holder. This patent shows a plastic pinching device for holding a line. This product appears to be connectable to the handle, and as such, can be obtrusive to the user.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,402 to Brent et al. is titled Fishing Rod Bite Indicator. This patent illustrates a visual rod indicator housed within a slide tube. One drawback of this invention is that it does not appear to release the line after a strike.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,683,629 to Robichaud et al. is titled Pocket Size Fish Strike Indicating Fixture. This patent demonstrates a device that is designed to snap on and off of a fishing pole in two points. This can be problematic, since fishing poles do not have a uniform dimension. Also, having the device connect to the pole at two locations can interfere with the engineered flexural characteristics of the fishing pole.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,454,861 to Keibler is titled Fishing Line Release and Bite Alarm Apparatus. This product appears to connect to the handle, which some anglers find objectionable.
None of these devices show a fish strike indicator that is designed for use with poles of various sizes.
None of these devices show a fish strike indicator that has a rod lock that is fixed about the fishing rod at a single location on the rod to minimize any changes in the flexural characteristics of the fishing rod.
None of these devices show a trigger with a kick-out post to release a signal from a ready position to a deployed position.
None of these devices show a fish strike indicator having a trigger that is flush with the main body during a storage position so as to minimize obtrusiveness to the user.
None of these devices show a trigger tensioner that can set the sensitivity of the trigger and also lock the fish strike indicator in the storage position.
Thus there exists a need for a fish strike indicator that solves these and other problems.